Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Meet Tween/YA Author Tammy Lowe

Today we welcome Tween/YA author Tammy Lowe who also belongs to my favorite profession: teaching.


A bit about Tammy in her own words:


I live up here in the Great White North with my husband of twenty years and our teenage son. From September to June, I am surrounded by preschoolers and covered in glitter and glue. Once school is out, I grab my hubby and our son, and we are off on some grand adventure. We’ve explored pyramids in Egypt and sailed down a river in rural China on a tiny raft. We’ve slept in the tower of a 15th century Scottish castle, searched for the Loch Ness Monster, and have even dined at a Bedouin camp in the Arabian Desert. I love to explore this amazing world of ours.


Why did you pick to write books for Tween/Young Adults?

It wasn’t a conscious decision. I wrote the story that was inside me and the tween/young adult genre is where my “voice” naturally fits in.

What types of books do you like to read?

I seem to gravitate toward action packed adventures. I love Suzanne Collins, Sidney Sheldon, Wilbur Smith…the list goes on and on. Anne of Green Gables and Jane Eyre are my two all-time favourite books though.

Tell us about The Acadian Secret and how the story came to be.

As a kid, I loved to read books and watch shows like Little House on the Prairie and Anne of Green Gables. I loved anything set in the “olden days”.

When I was about ten years old, I began to wonder about time travel. My biggest wish was that I’d end up back in the pioneer era. I wanted to go and hang out with spoiled Nellie Olsen. I don’t remember why I wished for Nellie over Laura Ingalls, but I think it had something to do with the fact that her parents owned the candy shop.

I had it all figured out. I didn’t want to live in the 18th or 19th century; I’d miss my family too much. And I can’t live without modern comforts. I wanted the freedom to travel back and forth through time.

So strong was my wish to time travel, I even dressed the part, as much as I could, without raising anyone’s suspicions. I wore dresses to school every day, when all my friends wore jeans and t-shirts. I had to be prepared just in case it worked, and I was whisked through time. That summer, I even begged my mom to buy me a bonnet. She did. I wore that white bonnet everywhere. If I ended up in Walnut Grove or Avonlea, I was prepared. (Yes, I embraced my inner dork.)

By the sixth grade I was old enough to realize that time travel probably wasn’t going to be a reality for me, so I decided that when I grew up, I’d write a book about a girl who could travel back and forth through time. The Acadian Secret is a Tween/YA Paranormal Action-Adventure about a young girl who can…time travel.

Here's a brief glimpse at The Acadian Secret:

Elisabeth London is keeping her new friends a secret from her parents. Not only do they live on the other side of the world in the Scottish Highlands, they lived more than three hundred and fifty years ago. Her mom and dad would never allow her to go gallivanting about seventeenth century Scotland.  They won’t even let her go to the mall by herself yet.

Twelve-year-old Elisabeth is old enough to know there is no such thing as magic, but when her quartz crystal necklace has the power to transport her back and forth in time, she no longer knows what to think. The only thing she is certain of is that she loves spending carefree days with Quinton, the mischievous nephew of a highland warrior, and sassy little Fiona, a farmer’s daughter.

However, Elisabeth’s adventures take a deadly turn when she is charged with witchcraft. At a time and place in history when witch-hunts were common, those found guilty were executed, children included. Elisabeth must race to find her way back home, while trying to stay one step ahead of the witch-hunter determined to see her burned at the stake.

What’s next for your writing? Are you working on a new story?

Yes. I am in the middle of researching and writing the next part of Elisabeth’s adventure.

Where can readers find you and your books?

 I can be found at:


www.tammylowe.com

http://museituppublishing.com/


12 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for hosting me, Cheryl.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That sounds like a great book. I love the fact you used to wear a bonnet. I used to wish I could dress up like my Holly Hobby doll. Glad I'm not the only one! I'm pleased to meet you, Tammy!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Suzanne,

      Thanks for your kind words!


      Funny you mentioned wishing you could dress up like Holly Hobby. I still have that doll dress. When I was in the sixth grade, I used to dress my DOG in it and carry her everywhere.

      Then, I'd stick her in the basket of my bike, and pretend she was E.T., The Extra Terrestrial, and we'd bike all over the city together.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  3. Great interview Tammy and Cheryl and the book sound great. Thanks for linking it in to the Kid Lit Blog Hop and best wishes for its success. Cheers Julie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Julie,

      Thanks for the kind comment!
      Have a great weekend.

      Delete
  4. I enjoyed your interview, and it seems to me your genre was set at the ripe age of ten. I got a laugh at wearing the bonnet just to be prepared.

    Your book sounds good. Best wishes and lots of luck writing the next one.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh - how fun! Love books with a time-travel component. I love how you've traveled with your family. This is exactly what I want to do with ours. Italy? Spain? France? Egypt? Sigh... One day!

    Thanks for linking into the Kid Lit Blog Hop! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Renee,

      Thanks for the kind words.

      I love history and I find taking kids to the actual place is a great way to bring it to life for them.
      Of course, books do that too. *wink wink*

      Have a great weekend.

      Delete